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This paper defines and discusses ‘mood boards’– those assemblages of images and, less frequently, objects, which are used to assist analysis, creativity and idea development in design activity. There is need for discussion since little published information currently exists to guide students and tutors. The paper proposes that mood boards can assist problem finding as well as problem solving. Primarily, mood boards provide a mechanism for students and practising designers to respond to perceptions about the brief, the problem as it emerges and the ideas as they develop. The construction of mood boards potentially stimulates the perception and interpretation of more ephemeral phenomena such as colour, texture, form, image and status. They are, like Debono's lateral thinking techniques, partly responses to an inner dialogue and partly provocation to become engaged in such a dialogue. Examples are drawn from recent work in the field of industrial design at Loughborough University.

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BackgroundThe material landscape we construct within our personal lives and inherit in public environments has significant impact upon our daily experiences. They affect our productivity, our feeling of wellbeing, and sense of being socially connected. Products that provide a positive userexperience can empower people and contribute to a healthful environment. Products that do not meet the product user's functional or emotional needs can cause a person's sense of independence to be eroded. MethodThe authors have developed an empathic design research strategy that builds on the capitals (e.g., background, physical abilities, and education) of the individual and the designer, to ensure that more intuitive design outcomes are generated which meet real needs, rather than assumed needs. Acknowledging that all people have an empathic horizon (a boundary to their knowledge, experience, and awareness), further learning can take place by the designer in direct consultation and collaboration with the users.

Exploring the degree to which individual students share a common perception of specific mood boards: Exploring the degree to which individual students share a common perception of specific mood boards: observations relating to teaching, learning and team-based design AbstractMood boards offer a visual and sensorial channel of communication and inspiration for design research and development, which could be considered to be more logical and empathic within a design context than traditional verbo-centric approaches. This paper explores individuals' perceptions of images through a sample of mood boards.Gender was chosen as a bipolar attribute of and was explored through the specific mood boards. A sample of 62 design students' responses was captured via a rating scale and key words. The paper reflects on the results obtained and attempts to translate findings into suggestions for other academic staff involved in undergraduate industrial design education.Keywords: communication, collaborative design, product design, perception, design researchMood boards are usually a collection of images compiled with the intention of communicating or provoking a mood or ambience during the product design process. They are often used in both establishing and agreeing an initial ambience for a product with a client and , during the design process, as a dynamic resource. As modern product design is more team based [1, 2]; how can we be sure that the individual designers and stakeholders in any team perceive a given board in a similar manner? If there are significant differences in perception the team may in effect, be pulling in different directions.